Soft Technology – Definition, Concepts, Objectives, and More

Soft Technology Definition

Soft technology is a relatively new term used to encompass technological or administrative, commercial, and organizational knowledge.

It includes the knowledge, procedures, methodologies, disciplines, services that make the subsequent development of products and services possible.

Concepts of Soft Technology

1. This concept rises in contrast to the term “hard technologies”, which refers to the physical world technologies, which are tangible.
2. Although both concepts have their connection with the scientific field that enables the development of new technologies and goods and services, soft technology is the intangible part.
3. Thanks to her, people have the necessary skills to adapt to the technological environment or organizations effectively.
4. As is reasonable, without soft technology, without knowledge, hard technology would not be possible.
5. And also, it is essential to possess the prior cognitive abilities that make the creation and advancement of these goods a reality.

Objectives of Soft Technology

• The chief objective of soft technology is to attain the best possible results in any organization, administration, corporation, or society.
• And also, it can apply in areas as diverse as industries, government bodies, or educational sites.
• By creating efficient subtleties and procedures within all these areas mentioned above, soft technology enables the efficient use of both a company’s human resources and the optimization of its production processes.
• Finally, soft technologies can also use in political and governmental contexts.
• Knowledge about the organizational and administrative processes can achieve all kinds of objectives in this field in the shortest possible time and take advantage of all resources.

How is Different Between Soft and Hard Technology?

1. As we have already mentioned, it refers to the intangible part of the development of goods and services. That is, the set of necessary knowledge that enables the operation and advancement of companies and organizations.
2. This knowledge usually links to sciences such as computer science, economics, sociology, and psychology.
3. On the contrary, hard technologies are those that people’s collective imagination associates with the idea of technology.
4. And also, these refer to the physical and tangible aspects of technology, including those that enable the transformation of materials to produce new objects and the final physical products developed in companies.
5. And also, it means that both the machinery that makes production possible and the final product is part of what is known as hard technology.

What are the Uses of Soft Technology?

Since soft technologies constitute the form of knowledge on a series of specific areas, which makes their development and progress possible, there are many intangible roles and tasks in which they produce a vital part.

Among some of these parts we can find:

• Business Administration
• Instruction
• Accounting everyday jobs
• Software development
• Marketing
• Organization
• Work Psychology
• Production logistics
• And also, Event organization.

The application of soft technology aims to optimize companies, government bodies, and industries at operational and organizational levels.

Similarly, it also pursues to optimize relationships, dynamics, and communications within these organizations.

As a consequence, regardless of whether the impartial of these organizations is profitable or not, this set of information and knowledge will enable an increase in their performance, obtaining better results and, of course, increasing profits.

Examples of Soft Technology

To clarify what precisely soft technology consists of and how it can apply, we present a sequence of examples below. Some bags or prototypes of soft technology are:

1. Human Resources

• The creation of human capitals departments in which psychological work approaches and currents use is one of the best examples.
• The use of knowledge from work psychology and organizations to select the working personnel of a company and when organizing and optimizing said organization, achieves an improvement in the potential and growth of organizations.

2. Computer and Mobile Device Software

• In this case, it can see how hard technology (electronic device or hardware) and soft (software) work together.
• Without the knowledge and services of handling electronic devices, the last would not even exist.
• Without knowledge, the operating system that would make hard technology possible could not develop.

3. Digital Marketing

• Since any business’s goal is to increase its profits by selling goods or products, the ability to influence potential buyers is essential. And also, it is where soft technology does its job.
• Thorough knowledge of consumer psychology, marketing, and advertising can persuade the consumer in its favour.

4. Food Preservation

• Some sciences study and analyze the development and degradation of food. This knowledge can apply to the food industry.
• In restaurants, to extend the useful life of food, keeping it for as long as possible, thus generating. Higher profitability for companies.
• These are just some examples in which soft technology facilitates and enhances companies, organizations, and institutions’ development.

Application Areas of Soft Technology

Some examples of application areas for soft technology are:

• Education.
• Administration.
• Accounting.
• Organization.
• Operations.
• Statistics.
• Production logistics.
• Marketing.
• Software development.
• Social psychology.
• And also, Work Psychology.

Features of Soft Technology

• It varies from hard technology because it links to technological knowledge.
• They are non-tangible elements that use in the field of administration or organizational processes. It encompasses the “know-how”. The use of soft technology requires to be able to produce hard technology goods.
• It has the assignment of optimizing the over-all operation of any organization or organization. It smears to services, factories, state, religious, educational, and commercial entities.
• Seeks to shape efficient social dynamics within organizations. Through the best use of soft technologies, fluency in human resource designs can develop. It can also apply to each of the production processes of any organization.
• It can also apply in political and governmental organizations. Through its use, short and long-term objects can execute plans that directly or indirectly affect society.

Conclusion

And also, it refers to technological knowledge, no tangible material, administrative or organizational use.

This type of technology mentions know-how; knowledge, methodologies, disciplines, or skills that allow the development of products or services.